A six-member Capitol panel voted unanimously today to recommend that the House censure Rep. Douglas Bruce for kicking a news photographer.

The panel of lawmakers took testimony from four people — starting with the Rocky Mountain News photographer who was kicked in the leg for taking Bruce’s picture during the morning prayer.

“I didn’t expect him to kick me with a Bible in the hand,” photographer Javier Manzano testified.

Lawmakers also questioned a Denver Post photographer who saw the kick, a House sergeant and Bruce.

Bruce told the panel that his “nudge” was a third warning to the media that he didn’t want a camera flashing in his face during a public prayer. “I asked them simply to allow me to pray,” Bruce said.

The Colorado Springs Republican says he asked photographers not to take his picture on the House floor during the prayer or Pledge of Allegiance and later gestured by wagging his finger.

After the Rocky Mountain News photographer took his picture anyway, he kicked him on the knee.

Bruce told the panel that it’s ironic he is the one being accused of violating the order and decorum of the House when the “media feeding frenzy” was flashing photos and surrounding him.

He said there was “no sound, no shriek, no anything” after he kicked the photographer.

Rep. Steve King, a Grand Junction Republican, asked Bruce whether keeping his hands and feet to himself was an option.

Bruce proposed to the panel that he and the photographer sign a letter saying they both regret the incident. He also vowed it wouldn’t happen again.

Lawmakers on the committee scolded Bruce and chastised his behavior. They called on him to apologize and were discussing an official reprimand.

“Rather than showing your spirituality to the public, you showed violence,” said King. “Republican or Democrat, sir, I will show you no quarter on that.”

King said that if his teenage son had kicked someone at school, he would have been slapped with a $50 fine and a three-day suspension. He added that he didn’t believe he should hold his son to a higher standard than a state representative.

The committee also voted 5-1 to recommend that House Speaker Andrew Romanoff request a formal apology from Bruce for disrupting the dignity of the chamber.

“The first thing that creates movement on a child’s behavior is the admission that they have done something wrong,” said Rep. Judy Solano, D-Brighton, a former teacher.

Rep. Paul Weissman, D-Louisville, voted against the motion because he said there was no point in requiring someone to apologize if they don’t mean it.

The panel voted 6-0 to recommend the House censure Bruce, which is more severe than a reprimand but less than an expulsion or suspension.

Jennifer Brown is an investigative reporter for The Denver Post, where she has worked since 2005. She has written about the child welfare system, mental health, education and politics. She previously worked for The Associated Press, The Tyler Morning Telegraph in Texas, and the Hungry Horse News in Montana.